Composing mechanism of typographical machines.



H. PEARCE & JL'E. BILLINGTON comosme MEGHANXSM 01-" TYPOGRAPHIGAL MACHINES.

APPLIOATIONTILED 0011.30, 1911. 1,105.1 5'7, Patented July 28, 1914.

' 2 SHBETS-SHEET 1.

APPLIGATIORPI LBD OCT. 30, 1911.

BEETS-SHEET 2.

' Patented July 28, 1914b Invenrons typographical machine.

livery mouth NITE STATES PATENT OFFICE;

HERBERT PEARCE AND JOHN ERNEST BILLINGTON,

OF BROADHEATH, 3 EN GLANl D,

ASSIGNORS T0 LINOTYPE AND MACHINERY LIMITED, OF- LONDON, EIhl'GcLAND.

COMPOSING MECHANISM OF TYIOGRAPHICAL MACHINES.

Specification of Letters Patent. I Patented J (11y 28 1914, .d-pplication filed Detober 30, 1911-. Serial No. 657,486. I

T 0 all 'wkomit may concern Be it known that we, HERBERT PEARCE and JOHN ERNEST BILLINGTON, subjects of the King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and residing at Linotype and Machinery WVOl'kS, Broadheath, in the county of Chester, England, have invented new and useful Improvements in the Composing Mechanism of Typographical Machines, of which the following is a specification."

' The present invention relates to improvements in the composing mechanism ot a Such a composlng mechanism always consists of the three following elements or their respective equivalentsz-(o) character finger keys arranged in the form knownin the art as a keyboard; (1)) organs generally arranged in a row to be actuated by the said finger keys, respectively, either directly or indirectly and (c) actuating means connecting each organ to its respective character finger key. It is a matter of inditterence to the present invention, what is the exact type of the sa d organs. That may vary to any extent with the type of machine. For instance, they may be escapements controlling matrices as in the composing mechanism of the Morgenthaler line --casting machine, or punches punching holes in a mechanical controller as in the composing mechanism of machines known commercially under the trade mark Monotype i The application of the invention to the composing-mechanism of a Mergenthaler line-casting machine has been chosen for specification. Such a machine is character ized by loose matrices stored according to their respective characters, A, a, B, Z), 1, 2, et cctera, in channels in a magazine, trom which channels they are liberated, one at a time, in the order of composition, by an escapement mechanism situated along the deof the magazine and which is keyboard similar to that of a type-writer; As the matrices escape from the magazine, they are assembled in a composed line which corresponds exactly, with the intended line of print. The composed worked from a line of matrices is then presented by the machine to its casting mechanism which proceeds to cast a bar of type metal as long as the intended line of print and having in relief on one of its longedges, the characters properly spaced out into words to print that intended line. As soon as this bar has been cast, the composed line of matrices is dis tributed, each of its matrices being returned by the machine to the particular channel from which it was liberated, but into the end of it opposite to that from which it was'liberated. Such a machine has been made capable of carrying two fonts of matrices differing from each other in style of character or face (to use the technical term) by adding a second magazine equipped with the additional font, the two magazines being parallel with each other and one above the other. Obviously, the operator could not ever he called upon to composefiom both magazines, 5. 6., in both faces, at one and the same moment of time, although it is just possible that he might be called upon to change face immediately after he had liberated only one matrix in the preceding face, so that the additionof the second magazine did not necessitate the addition of a second keyboard provided that a switch was introduced between the keyboard on the one hand and the two sets of matrix escapements (one set. on each magazine) on the other.

Taking the number of characters in a font, including spaces and punctuation marks. as 90 (there mightbe more or less than this it is only. an assumed number), there would be 90 finger keys on the keyboard. These finger keys would cooperate with as many matrix escapements of either magazine, ac-

cording to which set of escapements the 1 switch had switched them on to.

Referring to the accompanying drawings:

Figure 1 is a right-hand side elevation of a portion of a Mergenthaler composing mechanism, having two superposed magazines and a manually operable switch, and illustrating the keyboard mechanism, etc.; Figs. 2 and 3 are together a similar righthand side elevation thereof, having our invention applied thereto; Fig. 4 is a detail frontele vation of a portion of the same; and Figs. 5 to 10 are detached detail views.

Referring-to 1, 1, 1 are two of the i matrices in their respective channel 2, 2 of the magazine3; and 4, 4, two of the matrices in their res'pectivechannel 5, 5, of the magazine 6, all the matrices in each channel having lbs the same character. One magazine, say 3, is equipped with matrices having one style of character, say thick lined, while the other magazine 6 is equipped with matrices having another style, say thin lined. Further, each matrix has its own character in dupli- -catc, say roman and italic. the same number of channels in each magazine as there are characters in a font, but although the two magazines 3, 6, are equipped with two styles of character, each style in duplicate, making in all four Varieties of character, the machine would have a font of only (say) 90 characters, because although the operator has a choice of four varieties of character, this choice of variety leaves the inclusiveness of the font limited to that number of characters. Both magazines are flat, the channels in each standing, behind each other, looking at Fig. 1. They are oblique in order thatthe matrices may slide along the respective channelsby gravity. Each channel 2, 2, of magazine 3, has its own escapement lever 7-,fulcrumed at 8 on the magazine. 9 is a spring making a lever 7 hold a pawl 10 in engagement with the-leading matrix 1, 2'. 0., the one nearest the delivery mouth 11 of the magazine. A pawl 10 is held in that position by an escapementrod 12 pulled down by a spring 13. If the rod 12 were .pushed up, it would withdraw the respective pawl 10 out of engagement with the said leadingmatrix 1, thereby liberating it, whereupon it would drop through the mouth 11 on its way to the assembling mech anism. The withdrawal of the pawl 10 would be accompanied by the engagement of the pawl 14 with the next matrix 1. lVhen the spring 13 is allowed to pull' the rod 12 down again, the said next matrix 1 would slide down a short distance only, however, to be engaged by the pawl 10. So that a reciprocation of a rod 12 means the liberation of the leading matrix 1 from the respective channel 2, 2. Each channel 5, 5, of the magazine 6, has likewise its own escapement lever 16 fulcrumed at 17 on the magazine, its spring 18, its pawls 19, 20, and a link 21 from a lever 16 to the respective escapement rod 22 which is pulled down bya spring 23. A rod 22 stands edge on exactly opposite a rod 12. The two magazines, 3, 6, have not ordinarily, a font divided be tween them and only one magazine can be composed from at a time. Consequently, although each ofthe matrix channels 2, 2; 5, 5; in the magazines 3, 6, has its own escapcment'lcver 7 or 16 and its own escapement rod 12 or 22, there are only half that number of finger keys 24 on the keyboard. Each finger key 24 is'fulcrumed at 25 and has its inner end loosely engaged with a verti cally sliding bar 26 whose top end is loosely engaged with the horizontal arm of a bent lever 27 turning on a fixed fulcrum 28 and There would be driven) allowing of supporting by its upstanding arm, the free end of a lever 29 turning on a fixed fulcrum 30. A lever 29 has a cam 31 rotatable in a slot 32 therein about a pivot 33. There is a set of .parts27 to 33 inclusive for each bar 26, and as these bars 26 are thin and must be close together, room for the said sets of partsis found by placing one half of them in front of the row of bars 26 and the other half behind it. 34 is a roller extending under each half set of cams 31 at a short distance below it, both rollers being kept constantly rotating by the machine. 35. is a vertically sliding bar resting by its bottom end upon one of the inner ends of two lovers 29 that are opposite each other, and holding its top end under, but at a short distance below, the plane of the bottom end of the respective escapement rod 12 or 22. a bar 35 for each-pair of rods 12, 22. The bottom ends of both rows of escapement rods There 'is 1.2 and 22, areembraced by a loop 36 con- 27 far enough to place its upstanding arm 5.

under the respective slot 32 in the respective lever 29, whereupon the latter drops until its cam 31 rests upon the respective roller 34.- The respective cam 31 is then rotated once, its longer radius rocking the free end of the respective lever 29 upward and making it raise the respective escapement rod 12 or 22 as the case may be. At the moment when a cam 31 completes its single revolution, its bent. lever 27 engages under the inner end of its lever 29 thereby holding it off the roller 34 and its cam is automatically stopped. Thus the combination of parts 27 to 33 with the respective roller 34 constitutes a pilwerdriven mechanical relay capable of working the v escapement mechanisms, the superior strength of such relay (because it is powereaeh depression of a finger key 24 being affected by only a light touch on the part of the operator, while the Combination of the row of bars 35, loop 36, and lever 37 is a manual shift between the keyboard on the one hand and either of the two alphabets of matricesin the respective magazines 3 or 6, on the other.

Now it must be clearly understood that all the character finger keys 24 of the eomposing mechanism described in connection with Fig. 1 require the same degree of pressure on the part of the operator to etfectively depress them. This degree of pressure is only a small one and is known to operators as a light touch. Now the switch lever 37 of Fig. 1, requires considerably more power than this light touch to work it, and the like is true of every switch lever which it hasbeen proposed to combine withthe-keyboard of a composing mechanism of a typographical machine.

The present invention conslsts mainly 1n the combination with a keyboard'of light provements. are hereinafter specified at length.

Referring now to the. other figures of the drawing 61 (Fig.3) is one of the setof shift bars. This set is functionally identical with the set of bars 35 of Fig. 1.

126 is the light touch finger key to work the shift, There is interposed between the shift finger key 126 and the shift, a mechanical relay which is put into action by the depression of. the said key 126. The preferred construction of this relay is as follows. .One of the rollers 34,. preferably the front one, has a stud 102 (Fig. 4) alined with it and detaehably connected with it by a'tooth and slot arrangement 103. The stud.

102 is fast to a gear 104 meshing with a gear 105 turning on a fixed stud axle 106 (Fig. 3). 107 is a mutilated gear meshing with gear 105; 108, a cam; and 109, a disk, the three integral with each other and turnable t0- gcther on a fixed stud axle 110.

111v is an arm fast on a transverse shaft 112 turning in hearings on the machine frame; and 113, one or more upstanding arms onv thesaid shaft. The arms 113 are connected with the row of shift bars 61 by any suitable means. Fig. 3 shows a meansconsisting of a loop 114 carried by the top ends of the arms 113and embracing the row of bars 01-. The reciprocating motions of the loop 114 are guided by rollers 115 on fixed axes above and below it. The front end of thearm 111 is kept in constant contact with the periphery. of the cam 108 by a spring 1101 pulling on it from a fixed point 117 on the machine frame.

118 (Fig, 4) is a clutching pin free to slide in'a hole in the disk 109, the axis of the hole .119bcino. parallel with the axis of the disk and-,eoincident with the intersection of a circlctliereotn of the same diameter as the pitch-circle of the gear 107, by a diameter of the saiduisk, and which intersection is intcrmediate of the two arcs of gear teeth (higt) on the mutilated gear 107. There a similar pin on .the opposite side of the axis of the disk 109. The motion of each pin 118, 118, away from the gear 107, is Iiinited a plate-121. fast to the disk 1,09. 1 22 .(Figs. 3;and 10) is anarm fast on the 105 and Irotating between the disk 109 and the gear 107. The contour of its leading face is an involute curve with 'respec v to its axis. I

123 is a cam piece stationary between '(Fig. 4) the disk 109 and the gear 107.

'- 124 is a bell-crank lever fulerumed at 125 on the machine frame and holding its free end opposite a pin 118. Its opposite end is connected to a special finger key 126 ful crumed at 127 on the keyboard, by a link 128a-nd a lever 129 intermediate of the said finger ,key 126 and link 128, pivotallyconnected to both by its respective end, and fulcrumed at 130. The periphery of the cam 108 has a depression 131 in it on its long radius and a similar depression 132 on the short one. with this mechanical relay, an indicator to. show theoperator which set of escapements the shift stands set, at any given moment, to coiiperate with. A suitable one is shown in Figs. 3 and 4. I

133, 134, are two tablets inside a frame 135 fast on the front of the machine, the tablet 133 bearing the word Upper and the tablet 134, the word Lower, these two words referring to the respectivepositions of the two divisional magazines 41, 40.

There is, or may be, combined 136 is a plate having a slot in it large enough to show one tablet 133 or 134 to the operator while it conceals the other one from him. This plate 136 is caused to slide vertically in both directions in the frame 135 and in front of the tablets 133, 134, by the rocking of the arm 113 acting through a lever. 137 and a link 138, the lever 137 being alined with the arm 111, centrally ful- So long as the 111 in one of the depressions 131, 132; the

holes 119 intermediate of the two arcs of gearing on the mutilated gear 107 and the.

pin 118 that isnearest to the arm 122 within reach of the lever 124. The roller 34 is keeping the arm 122 revolving past the hole 119 next to it. The figures show the shift set to cotiperate with the set of escapeinents on the lower divisional magazine 40.

Consequently, the cam 108 holds the sighting slot in the plate 136, opposite the tablet 134 which is marked Lower. When the operator Wants to compose from the di-f, visional magazine 41,.he depresses the finger' key 126, thereby pushing the pin 113 then opposite the lever 124 into. the-vpath of the arm 122; The latter then engages the said 108 and disk 109 far enoughto put the gear 107 in engagement with the gear 105 which" pin 118, thereby rotating the gear 107, cam

in the plate 136 opposite the tablet 133,

marked Upper and makes the plate 136 cover the tablet 134. Whenever the oper-.

ator wants the shift mechanism to act, all he has to do is to depress the finger key 126 with a normal touch, and the automatic mechanical relaydoes the rest.

The character finger keys of the keyboard of the invention, are not included in the figures devoted to the illustration of it, viz :-Figs. 2 to 10, because they are of the well-known construction and are light touch keys. This keyboard has as many character finger keys as either magazine 40 or 41 magazine channels 43 for the matrices 4401 magazine channels 43" for the matrices 44*." The two magazines 40, 41 may be;ei-ther;i superposed as shown in Fig. 2 or side by Fsid'ezin the same plane. Each may bet nipped with its own font complete in itsei or with any other arrangement of charactersdesired. The number of characters 45, 146,-. on each matrix is dealt with farther on; "The combination of escapement levers-springs, pawls, escapement rods, bent levers 27,,lever's 29, cams 31 and rollers 34, is the. same as that described with reference to Fig.1.; and'the several parts of it are therefore marked with the same reference numbers. In the mechanism illustrated it is the escapement levers 7,;16, that are'.the above mentioned organs to be actuated by the "characterfin ger keys; and-the rods 12, 22, and-bars 26,61,7thatjare the-above mentioned actuating- {imea'iji's each organ to its respective chaitacterz fing'erkey.

As the matrices issueifrom'theifrespective divisional' 'inagazin' r 4l zfFig. 2), they pass "througlire'spe "echa'nnel's 90, 91, 92, into the part ofthe' miachine known asthe assembler; This part .isw'ell known in the; 'art, and consequently, forms'nopar-t'of. the

matrices issuing intl 'e order of composition from the bottom ends of the channels 92, are assembled, side present invention. Thein the assembler. f

'Theabove mentioned continuous font may I [be doubled by placing two characters on each I characters 3.45; 46'.- All the, matrices whose 6' are to be in the composed line, J

' ,'.:matrix, the two differing from each other to 'any extent. Such-a doubling is shown in Fig, 2 where each matrix has two such characters 46 "'fstandat one level in the assembler, while series of actuating devices,

those whose characters 45 are to be in that line, are automatically raised as they enter the assembler, to make them present their characters 45 in that line, and are automatically supported in that raised. position. The devices for so raising and supporting are likewise Well known in the art, and consequently, form no part of the present inven- .tion. The terms matrix, matrices, are to be understood throughout th1s specification as including type die, type dies, tively.

Having described our invention, we declare that what we claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is respec- 1. In composing mechanism for a typographical machine, the combination with a keyboard, a plurality of series of organs actuated thereby, and a power driven shift to connect the key board with any selected series of organs, of a finger key adapted to control the said shift.

2. In composing mechanism for a typographical composing machine, the combination with a keyboard, a plurality of series of organs actuated thereby, and a shift to connect the key board with any selected series of organs, of a fingcrkey adapted to work the said shift and a, power driven relay through which the said finger key controls the said shift.

3. In composing mechanism for a typographical composing machine, the'combination of keyboard, a plurality of series of organs actuated thereby, a power driven shift to connect the key board with any selected series of organs, and a finger key Work the said shift, the said keyboard comprising half as many character finger keys .as there are organs to be actuated by them.

4. In a typographical machine, the combination of a plurality of magazines each provided with a series of escapements, a corresponding plurality of series of actuating devices for the escapeinents, a keyboard mechanism, a power driven shift to connect the keyboardmechanism with any selected and a finger key adapted to control the said shift. v

5, In a typographical machine, the combination of'a plurality of magazines each provided with a sericsof escapements, a corresponding plurality of series of actuating devices for the escapements, a single series of adapted to I operating members, a power driven shift to connect said members with any selected series of actuating devices, and a finger key adapted to control said shift.

6. In the composing mechanism for a typographical composing machine, a mechanical relay comprising a constantly rotating gearcarrying an arm; a rotatable set of'clutching pins one of which is to be put in the path of the said arm bya finger key;

icense the said finger key; the cam-and set oi arcs of gearing fast to the set of clutching pins and rotatable through one are by the first mentioned gear; operative connection between the said cam and the shift of the coin posing mechanism; and automatic means for disengaging the acting clutching pin as soon as the said shift has been reset.

In a typographical machine comprising composing mechanism, the combination of a plurality of series of escapement devices, and a single series of actuating means there for, with power operated shifting mechanism to' bring the series of actuating means into operative relation with any selected series of escapement devices asdesired, and means to control the 1 operation of said shiftmg mechanism,

at will.

composing mechanism, plurality 8. In a typographical machine comprising the combination of a escapeinent devices, and

of series of a single series of actuating means therefor, with power operated shifting mechanism to bring the series ofactuating means into operative relation with any selected series of escape nent devices as desired, and a finger key and connections to control the operation of said shifting mechanism.

In witness whereof We have hereunto set our hands in the presence of two Witnesses.

HERBERT PEARCE. JOHN ERNEST BILLINGTON. Witnesses:

J 01m WILLIAM Tnomes, I MALcoLm Simrnnns'n 

